


The Ghost in the Radio

by SteveAtwater



Category: Eerie Indiana
Genre: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Gen, General Eerie Weirdness, Ghosts, Horror, I Wrote This While Listening To Robert Johnson, Late at Night, Radio, Robert Johnson, Static
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-24
Updated: 2019-12-24
Packaged: 2021-02-25 21:20:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21932095
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SteveAtwater/pseuds/SteveAtwater
Summary: Screamwhispers are caught in the static of Marshall's radio.
Comments: 4
Kudos: 4





	The Ghost in the Radio

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is probably a one-shot. Unless something hammers on my brain as an explanation for what's behind the screamwhispers in the static. But otherwise, let's leave it as another one of the unsolved mysteries of Eerie, or one of the mysteries only solved offscreen.

The voice comes through the static of the radio occasionally.

If he was still in New Jersey, Mars would be able to ignore it. He'd just think it was his mind playing tricks on him, or that he was hearing things, or that the static just has weird contours that sometimes sound like a voice screamwhispering at him.

And if he was still in New Jersey, this would probably satisfy him, at least enough so he could turn the knob to a new station and put it out of his head. But this is Eerie. And weird things in Eerie are never just coincidence–unless, of course, it would be weirder (or more annoying) for them to just be coincidental. So yes, the old couple that shares one pair of dentures between them? Weird, but not _Eerie_ weird, and he's still annoyed that he and Simon spent a few days tailing them just to check they weren't in some kind of cult, or weird aliens, or in some kind of weird alien cult.

But the voice comes through the static of the radio, and it's happened so frequently that Mars knows–knows in his _gut,_ the same way he knew that something was _wrong_ with Eerie when they broached the border of the woods on the edge of the town, the same way that he knew that Simon saw the same things he did and would confront them, the same way he finds himself _noticing_ weirdness and not just writing it off the way the adults in his life seem to–he _knows_ that this is _not normal._

So. He pops out a notebook, flips on his desk lamp, and listens to the static, because he could call Simon and Dash over but it's late, and they need their sleep. This probably isn't urgent enough to warrant all three of them losing sleep. Just him, that's okay. He's done it before. He'll do it again. And when there isn't some weirdness pressing on his bones, some Friday or Saturday, he'll sleep the sleep of the dead, let his body's exhaustion claim him until he rises in mid-afternoon–

But not tonight. Tonight the radio hisses static that occasionally resolves into a screamwhisper and it's just disturbing enough that he _needs_ to know why. It's an instinct, an addiction, not just something he wants to do but something that pulls, yanks, grabs, demands that he investigate, for better or worse. Maybe if it was weaker, or if it wasn't there, Mars could ignore the weirdness around him, deal with it the way everyone else seems to, by pretending it's normal or nonexistent, but he can't. He just _can't_. And if he doesn't investigate the radio static, he won't be able to sleep anyway and the pull will just get harder and stronger and worse.

He listens to the static, but it doesn't resolve into words.

Mars taps his pen against the desk idly. He has to figure this out. Maybe not everything, but something, he has to have something figured out. Just whether or not this is dangerous would be useful.

He writes "Radio Voice" at the top of the page, and then writes "Malevolent?" below it. After all, he doesn't know what's up with the voice. He just knows that occasionally it comes out of the radio, always when it's between stations or Eerie's local station has gone off the air, like tonight...

_save me_

Mars's head instinctively jerks towards the radio, but he's sure of what he heard. He jots it down and waits.

_save me_

The same thing, again, when he was just about to give up. He turns up the volume a bit–not too loud, Syndi spent her night studying for midterms, and as much as she annoys him sometimes he doesn't want her to fail–but just a little. Maybe it'll be a bit clearer.

_where are you_

_you said you'd never leave_

Mars dutifully writes it down and listens for more. But nothing.

Nothing.

For four minutes. And then–

_save me_

He writes it down, along with some questions about who exactly is on the airwaves, and who they want to save them.

_save me_

He writes it down, but this time the pause is just a few seconds.

_save me_

_save me save me_

_save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me_ _save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me_ _save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me_ _save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me_ _save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me_ _save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me_ _save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me_ _save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me_ _save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me save me_

Mars is drowning in the words, repeated over and over, tumbling onto themselves into an endless chorus of screamed whispers, so much, so many, he actually feels like he's drowning, not just from the words themselves but the repetition the desperation the plaintive need the words transforming into howls and screams and needs and the pull of his need to know to discover to investigate is nothing in the force of the wave of this a demand a demand a demand a demand he can't fulfill but he needs to fix he needs to do something save them save them save them save them save them save t–

The sound cuts out, and Mars breaks out of his trance in order to look at his sister, who stares at him angrily, the plug of the radio in her hands.

" _Go. To. Sleep,_ " she hisses at him, dropping the plug behind her as she leaves his room, gently shutting the door behind her even though Marshall can tell she's enraged.

He blinks a few times, and then calmly turns out the light, heads over to his bed, and gets under the covers. Although his heart is racing, one thing has become obvious from tonight's investigation.

He'll look into this again. But not without backup. And backup can definitely wait until tomorrow.


End file.
